Thy Brother's Killer

It appears an innocent man has been killed, and the Mages' Collective is none too happy about it. Indeed, one of their very own mages has been slain by other rogue mages, and the Collective wants you to do something about it. Thus, you'll be contracted for this side quest at location A on the map, at the Lake Calenhad Docks. Once you've accepted this side quest, you're free to undertake it at any time. A word of warning before we proceed, however. If you've yet to visit the Dalish Elves during the four-way main quest following your time in Lothering, it's best to put this side quest on the shelf until you do. You'll have to head far, far into their territory to undertake this side quest, so if you've yet to visit them and attempt to do so now, you'll have to do all sorts of main quest stuff just to reach that area. So it's best to wait until the Dalish Elves have been dealt with.

The idea is to head to the Dalish Camp on the world map, traveling from the docks. When you arrive, you can breach the Brecilian Forest from the far end of the Dalish Camp. If you've taken our advice and have dealt with these guys already, then the Brecilian Forest should be completely clear of any enemy inhabitants whatsoever. So, traveling should be smooth enough. Voyage through the first part of the forest, and enter the second part of the forest, near the ruins you go through during the main quest. At the north end of the map are some mostly-destroyed ruins; you fought some powerful enemies here earlier. Now, you'll find four rogue mages performing some sort of ritual. Upon speaking with one of them and letting them know that you come on behalf of the Collective, they'll attack the party. Thankfully, this fight is fairly simple to survive, even if the enemy mages are capable of using powerful magic. Focus on a single target at a time, felling one, then the next, and so on and so forth. Nullifying their numbers in such a way can only benefit you, making the battle at hand progressively easier. Once they are all dead, scour their bodies for goods, and then report back to the Collective representative at Lake Calenhad Docks to receive your reward money.